Growth is from distribution, and we are not talking logistics.
How do you grow a business? If you asked that question in an MBA college class, you’d get a varied set of answers, but themes would emerge: have a strategy, control costs, know your customer, a unique product/service, execute the plan. None of these answers are wrong, but MBA students’ answers miss the point: the real world is imperfect with neither the time, resources nor budgets to tackle the issue of growth from an academic standpoint. Shareholders want value…now. Customers want the product/service…now. Employees want to be taken care of…now. In established businesses, a growth strategy generally involves changing an existing course of action. What exists may be well known and preferred, and change is generally seen as something which is painful, risky and undesirable.
Which explains why many businesses eke out incremental growth year after year. So, let’s address some of the macro questions associated with growth and strategy.